Its day four back to school and I know that many of us are wishing to go back to that nice, long break. While many stayed here in the comforts of their home, many traveled with their families to take advantage of the two weeks off and celebrate the holidays, including me!
While this blog is mainly about my thoughts on travel and my aspirations as a future traveler, I will share with you my adventures on trips that I do get to take as well. The first week of break my family and I drove 8 hours to the Gulf and met my dad's entire side of the family for Christmas on Dauphin Island, Alabama.
We stayed in a house right on the beach, and packed 15 people into it. From the moment I first saw the ocean, I have been a total
The family
beach-lover, plus I absolutely adore my family, so this week couldn't have gotten much better. (Except for the weather...it could have been a tad warmer).
Probably like everyone's family, mine is just a little crazy...or maybe a lot. From the games, the jokes, the early morning and late night adventures, countless of memories were made.
My younger brother, Carson, is an early riser and because he was awake before anyone else, he decided to go out onto the back deck. There must have been a lot of seagulls around the
Seagull feeding adventures
house at that time because he got the idea to feed them. In just a matter of seconds, there must have been 30 to 40 birds circling him and his handful of bread. Feeding the seagulls became a regular pastime, and Carson eventually got my uncle in on it too. The two began having contests to see who could get the birds to first take it from their hands, and eventually from the top of their heads. My uncle won.
The island was fairly small with just a few small shops, restaurants, and a convenient store, and you could drive the entire length of the island in probably 20 minutes. On one end is and old Confederate fort, Fort Gaines, from the Civil War that was actually pretty cool. We weren't able to go inside because it was close for Christmas, but we were able to see different parts of the fort as well as an old shipwreck.
Dauphin Island is about 45 minutes (by ferry) away from Pensacola, Florida, which is where a Naval Base is located. My grandfather was in the Navy for for a large portion of his career and was actually stationed in Pensacola, so Papa wanted all of us grandkids to see where he worked and the museum that is located there. It was cool to see what he was a part of and we got a sense why he is so proud of his past.
One of the best parts of the entire trip were the sunsets. Christmas Eve had been the first sunny and somewhat warm day since we had gotten to the island, and it ended in the most beautiful sunset. After we got out of church, we saw the bright orange and pink sky and hurried to the west end of the island to get the best view of it. And it was breathtaking.
The trip, like all trips, ended much too quickly and I was sad to have to say goodbye to my family. The ride home was bittersweet-- already missing the beach, but at the same time looking forward to being home again. Thankfully, we made some great memories that I will treasure for a long time.
And that's really what traveling is about right? Going on an adventure with the people you love, and making memories that will last a lifetime.
While this blog is mainly about my thoughts on travel and my aspirations as a future traveler, I will share with you my adventures on trips that I do get to take as well. The first week of break my family and I drove 8 hours to the Gulf and met my dad's entire side of the family for Christmas on Dauphin Island, Alabama.
We stayed in a house right on the beach, and packed 15 people into it. From the moment I first saw the ocean, I have been a total
The family
beach-lover, plus I absolutely adore my family, so this week couldn't have gotten much better. (Except for the weather...it could have been a tad warmer).
Probably like everyone's family, mine is just a little crazy...or maybe a lot. From the games, the jokes, the early morning and late night adventures, countless of memories were made.
My younger brother, Carson, is an early riser and because he was awake before anyone else, he decided to go out onto the back deck. There must have been a lot of seagulls around the
Seagull feeding adventures
house at that time because he got the idea to feed them. In just a matter of seconds, there must have been 30 to 40 birds circling him and his handful of bread. Feeding the seagulls became a regular pastime, and Carson eventually got my uncle in on it too. The two began having contests to see who could get the birds to first take it from their hands, and eventually from the top of their heads. My uncle won.
The island was fairly small with just a few small shops, restaurants, and a convenient store, and you could drive the entire length of the island in probably 20 minutes. On one end is and old Confederate fort, Fort Gaines, from the Civil War that was actually pretty cool. We weren't able to go inside because it was close for Christmas, but we were able to see different parts of the fort as well as an old shipwreck.
Dauphin Island is about 45 minutes (by ferry) away from Pensacola, Florida, which is where a Naval Base is located. My grandfather was in the Navy for for a large portion of his career and was actually stationed in Pensacola, so Papa wanted all of us grandkids to see where he worked and the museum that is located there. It was cool to see what he was a part of and we got a sense why he is so proud of his past.
One of the best parts of the entire trip were the sunsets. Christmas Eve had been the first sunny and somewhat warm day since we had gotten to the island, and it ended in the most beautiful sunset. After we got out of church, we saw the bright orange and pink sky and hurried to the west end of the island to get the best view of it. And it was breathtaking.
The trip, like all trips, ended much too quickly and I was sad to have to say goodbye to my family. The ride home was bittersweet-- already missing the beach, but at the same time looking forward to being home again. Thankfully, we made some great memories that I will treasure for a long time.
And that's really what traveling is about right? Going on an adventure with the people you love, and making memories that will last a lifetime.